Luke 21:5-9

Luke 21:5-9

And while some say regarding the temple, that it has been arranged by good stones and by dedicated things, He said, “These things that you all watch with your eyes – a day will come in which a stone will not be set away upon a stone which will not be overthrown.”  And they interrogated him while saying, “Teacher, therefore when will these things be and what is the sign when these things should be about to become?”  And the one said, “See that you should not be led astray.  For many will come upon my name while saying, ‘I am’ and ‘The time has approached.’  Do not walk behind them.  And when you all should hear about wars and tumults, do not be terrified.  For it is necessary for these things to become first.  But it is not immediately the end.”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Once more we see Jesus take advantage of the surroundings.  His disciples are amazed at the temple around them.  They are amazed at the massive stones built upon one another.  It was an incredible structure to behold!  Jesus notices their attention and He seizes the opportunity.  This is a great opportunity to take their amazement at the apparent indestructability of this temple area and talk about a time when it wouldn’t even exist anymore.

Are you amazed at Jesus’ ability to take His surroundings and teach about God?  Are you surprised at Jesus’ sense of opportunity?  How good are you at being able to look around you and see something that you can use to teach people about God?

Second Thought:

The disciples are curious.  They inquire from Jesus about that which they do not know.  There are two really good dynamics to this thought.  First of all, they are curious.  They want to know.  They are thinking on a deeper level and coming up with questions for which they do not know the answers.  As for the second dynamic, it tells us much about their relationship with Jesus.  They trust Jesus.  They are willing to humbly submit to their teaching.  They believe in Jesus’ ability to give them answers.  They have confidence in Jesus.  This is what discipleship is all about.  Curiosity and trust working together to develop a person into closer relationship with the Lord.

Are you curious about anything in the spiritual world?  Where have you learned that you can place your trust?  Who has shown that they will place their trust in you?

Third Thought:

When we start reading passages like this, where we hear about the days of judgment and days of the Lord, we need to make sure that we read Jesus’ actual words rather than the words that we want to hear.  Jesus is clear to tell us that we will hear rumors of war and turmoil.  We shouldn’t be deceived.  This is just the beginning of the end.  The end is coming.  It is always coming.  But just because we hear about people being violent against other people we should not leap to the conclusion that the end is imminent.  What Jesus is really telling us is that we need to remain calm in moments of turmoil.  We need to keep ourselves under check.  We need to continue to be rational when the world is falling apart around us.  Jesus is concerned that we will be led astray because of our curiosity.

How easy is it for you to not get caught up in the hype around you?  Why do we want to get sucked into the hype and believe that the return of the Lord and the days of judgment are right around the corner?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 21:10-13